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Stronger, lighter and more efficient: Plastics making the vehicles of the future
This article sets out some ideas for how design contributes to making vehicles more energy-efficient, and thereby reducing their impact on the environment. The article has been written to support the online chat with Professor Trabucco.
Mobility is at the heart of the modern way of living. Whether we are travelling to school or work, going shopping or going on holiday, we have come to regard cheap transport by car and plane as an indispensable part of our everyday lives. In some societies it goes even further, and people regard cheap fuel and flights as something they are fundamentally entitled to.
However “cheap” travel is not all it seems. There is a massive environmental cost to transport which is largely hidden from everyday consumers, but which people are increasingly worried about.
Making modes of transportation as energy-efficient as possible is essential in order to meet the demand for cheap travel in a socially and environmentally-responsible way. However there are also pressures to build vehicles that do not just perform well but which look good too. The role of designers is crucial in creating this new generation of attractive but energy-efficient vehicles.
Advanced materials play a crucial role in allowing designers to create vehicles that can go further on less fuel. A widely-used technique in this respect is finding ways to make vehicles lighter, as lighter vehicles require less fuel. For this reason many designers are turning to plastics. Put simply, plastics combination of versatility, strength and low weight allow designers to create vehicles that are lighter but which keep the same strength.
Designers have been turning to plastics to make more efficient cars for years. A modern mid-range car with a weight of about 1,000 kg contains approximately 15% (i.e. 150 kg) of plastics. Plastics are so popular because they will take almost any desired shape, improve safety and comfort, and can be processed easily and cost-efficiently. Plastics are being increasingly substituted for heavy glass in cars. Modern headlights, rear lights and even rear and side windows are made of plastics, because plastics save weight, enhance the safety of the product and provide broad design flexibility.
Hybrid materials (i.e. substances that combine together two or more materials) are also being widely developed and used. Combining materials can generate superior results by exploiting the best characteristics of each material; for example, metal and plastic are often combined to give increased sturdiness and strength at a very light weight. The weight of finished products that use this hybrid material can be 40% less than products made purely of metal.
Aeroplanes make particular use of this hybrid materials technology, as when you are in the air every gramme counts. The new Airbus A380 – the largest passenger aircraft in the world – contains 25% composite materials. The Airbus can cover a range of 14,800 km and uses only 3.3 litres of kerosene per passenger per 100 km.
Engine technology also plays a major role in improving environmental performance. Fuel cells in cars are a technology that uses hydrogen as a fuel source to generate power. This technology works using the process of catalysis, and makes use of plastics as conductive membranes to generate power.
In a previous “Energy is our Future” chat, Futurologist Ray Hammond predicted that by the year 2030 it will be commonplace to drive cars that can do 1,500 km on only four litres of petrol. While it seems far-fetched now, together plastics and designers can help realise this vision.
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